Reactionary

Reactionary (or reactionist) is a political epithet typically applied to extreme ideological conservatism, especially that which wishes to return to a real or imagined old order of things, and which is willing to use coercive means to do so. The term is primarily used as a term of opprobrium (groups rarely identify themselves as reactionary), meant to assert the idea that the opposition is based in merely reflexive politics rather than responsive and informed views.

References

• The Governments of Europe, Frederic Austin OGG, Rev. Ed., The MacMillan Co., l922, pg 485.
• The French Revolution, Robert Sobel, Ardmore Press, NY, l967. pg 85.
• as quoted in The Menace of the Herd, von Kuehnelt-Leddihn, pp 200-201; referencing Vorläufer des Nationalsozialismus, A. Ciller, Ertl-Verlag, Wien, l932. p 135 (for first quote) and pp 141-142 (for second quote).
• The Story of American Democracy, Political and Industrial, Willis Mason West, Allyn and Bacon, NY, l922. pg 276.
• Ibid. Quoted from Division and Reunion, pg 12.
• Safire's Political Dictionary, William Safire, under the heading "Reactionary" and the second quote from, The Challenge to Liberty, pg 57, by Hoover.
• Liberty or Equality, von Kuehnelt-Leddihn, pg 186.

Notes

(**) Republicanism in the French revolutionary meaning meant self-government with a constitution, which is often described as a "democratic republic" or a "constitutional democracy".

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